Story by PATRICK NZIOKA
Publication Date: 9/28/2007�

Keiyo South MP Nicholas Biwott is expected to get a bigger position in Kanu when the more than 3,000 members converge in Nairobi at the weekend for the national delegates conference.

Keiyo South MP Nicholas Biwott.

The move is the outcome of the harmonisation process that was agreed upon between Mr Biwott�s faction and another led by Uhuru Kenyatta following talks to unify the party.

One of the issues agreed upon during the talks was to share party positions equally between Mr Biwott and Mr Kenyatta. The latter will retain the chairmanship.

Another key issue is to appease the Kalenjin community who feel pushed out of the party they have supported for a long time. They also agreed that Mr Kenyatta and Mr Biwott be joint signatories recognised by the Electoral Commission of Kenya for the party�s nomination.

Prof Sam Ongeri and Mr Noah Katana Ngala, who belonged to the Biwott faction, will get positions of vice- chairmen, left behind by Mr Dalmas Otieno and Mr Chris Okemo who have joined the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM).

From Mr Kenyatta�s side, Mr Justin Muturi and Mr Marsden Madoka will assume the two remaining positions of vice-chairmen.�

Bomet MP Nick Salat assumes the post of secretary general, replacing Eldoret North MP William Ruto, a member of ODM�s pentagon.

Former minister Julius Sunkuli and Buret MP Paul Sang will also be beneficiaries in the new arrangement.

Arrangements for the meeting that will also endorse the party�s position not to field a presidential candidate in favour of President Kibaki are at an advanced stage.

Notice sent out

The venue has already been secured while the notice was sent out a fortnight ago, party executive officer Njee Muturi said yesterday.

�I have information that delegates from the far-flung areas have already started their journey to Nairobi in readiness for the meeting,� Mr Muturi said by telephone.

The mode of nominating parliamentary and civic candidates within the Party of National Unity (PNU) will also be discussed and endorsed.

Lifted and published by Korir, API*APN source.nation.ke

Story by OWINO OPONDO
Publication Date: 9/28/2007�

Political parties could soon be funded from the Treasury if President Kibaki approves a new Bill passed in Parliament yesterday.

Party supporters at a past political rally. Should the new Bill become law, MPs will have to give a two-week notice before defecting. Photo/STEPHEN MUDIARI

However, for them to qualify, they must meet tough conditions. One states that for a party to qualify, at least a third of its national officials must be from either gender.

The Bill also provides tough rules to tame the culture of defections. It demands, among other requirements, that an MP intending to ditch a party shall give his party 14 days notice.

And if it becomes law, politicians who have been hiring gangs to disrupt rallies organised by their competitors will also pay a fine not exceeding Sh15,000, or face a jail term of not more than two years, or both.

Settle disputes

The Political Parties Bill, 2007, also seeks to establish a powerful Political Parties Disputes Registrar to settle disputes involving members of political parties and to resolve wrangles among coalition partners.�

There will be a powerful office of the Registrar of Political Parties under the Electoral Commission of Kenya. Among other things, the registrar will ensure parties applying for registration reflect national membership and the diversity of Kenyan communities, do not have a religious slant, and also avoid using repugnant symbols or those of existing entities.

The Political Parties Bill has been on the agenda of Parliament for 16 years, but lapsed with every end of the life of the august House � until yesterday.

Currently, Kenya has more than 300 registered political parties.

The ruling National Rainbow Coalition (Narc) rode to power in 2002 following what some leaders of affiliate parties claimed was a memorandum of understanding between President Kibaki and other key leaders in the coalition on how ministerial posts and other top positions in government were to be shared out. But a year later, the Liberal Democratic Party of Lang�ata MP Raila Odinga walked out of the Government, saying it had been duped.

Such scenarios will be a thing of the past if the Bill becomes law. Parliament�s departmental Committee on the Administration of Justice and Legal affairs introduced an amendment requiring parties to file any pre-election agreements with the registrar of political parties to ensure that the covenants are respected after the elections.

The clause says: �Where two or more political parties resolve to form a coalition before or after an election, the instruments of the coalition agreement shall be deposited with the Registrar for the purposes of arbitration between the coalition parties�.

Once the Bill becomes law, the minister for Finance will prepare annual allocations to the Political Parties Fund to be administered by the registrar. Fifteen per cent of the money in the fund will be distributed to all political parties that qualify, while 80 per cent will be disbursed proportionately �by reference to the number of votes secured by each of the political parties at the previous parliamentary election�. Five per cent of the money will be used to meet the administrative costs of the Fund.

And where a presidential candidate is supported by more than one political party, the Bill provides that only votes cast for parliamentary and civic candidates of the respective parties will be taken into account to determine the amount payable to the parties.

More than 30 MPs yesterday went into the committee of the whole House where they scrutinised the Bill. And in a rare show of unity, the members lamented about the confusion and personality cults that have in the past plagued political parties.

The MPs agreed that an individual should be allowed to contribute a maximum of Sh5 million to a political party in a year. However, foreigners are barred from funding political parties.

Justice and Constitutional Affairs minister Martha Karua and Gwassi MP Zaddock Syong�o (Narc) moved amendments on behalf of the Government and the justice committee respectively.

Those present agreed on a number of amendments, save for the one seeking to compel the President to give his assent to the Bill within 90 days. Members were united in saying the Head of State should be allowed to exercise his executive powers of transforming Bills passed by Parliament into law. To ensure funds are not misused by political parties, the proposed law empowers the registrar to request the Director of Internal Audit to carry out an audit of the accounts of a political party at any time.

Parties already in existence must comply with the new law within six months once its date of effect is published.

System was abused

The Bill provides timelines for application for registration of political parties, effectively doing away with the current system where this is left to the discretion of the Registrar of Societies. Opposition leaders have in the past said that the system was abused by the Government to delay registration of parties deemed to be unfriendly to the Government.

The new Bill allows the registrar to issue provisional certificates of registration after receiving an application. A political party shall take not more than 180 days to apply for full registration.

However, a party that has been provisionally registered shall be entitled to address public meetings in any part of the country with assistance of State security. They shall also have equitable access to the State-owned Kenya Broadcasting Corporation television and radio stations.

There are also provisions to ensure probity in the way registered parties keep their financial records.

For example, once a party is registered, it shall submit a record on its assets and liabilities to the registrar within 90 days. And they shall, within 90 days after participating in a General Election, submit a detailed statement of all expenditure on each candidate it sponsored.

Lifted and published by Korir, API*APN source.nation.ke

Story by JONATHAN KONUCHE and PPS
Publication Date: 9/28/2007�

President Mwai Kibaki has declined to assent to some of the amendments contained in the Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill 2007.�

The specific amendments to the Bill that the President turned down include changes to the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Act, 2003, and amendments to the Public Officer Ethics Act 2003.

Attorney-General Amos Wako forwarded the amendments to the President Kibaki on Thursday evening.�

Consequently, President Kibaki has written to the Speaker of the National Assembly, Mr Francis ole Kaparo, giving his reasons for the rejection and recommending his views on the amendments.

Mid this month, opposition MPs and some back-benchers united in pushing through a proviso to the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Act that would have barred the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission from investigating crimes committed before the law came into effect.

Had it sailed through, it would have meant that the commission could not use the provisions in its Act to investigate the Goldenberg scandal, which is estimated to have cost the taxpayer Sh58 billion, and some Anglo Leasing type contracts signed before May 2, 2003.

The commission, headed by Mr Justice (rtd) Aaron Ringera, would have relied on the provisions of fighting economic crimes in the Penal Code to tackle corruption

The MPs had also rejected a raft of amendments that the commission had wanted passed by Parliament to give it more power to expedite the cases it was working on and widen its net in catching the corrupt.

Different reactions

Parliament�s passing of the amendment had elicited different reactions, with members of the civil society, the public and some embassies condemning the move, saying it would give amnesty to looters.�

Meanwhile, President Kibaki has assented into law the Media Bill 2007 and the Tobacco Control Bill 2007.�

The Media Bill had been returned to Parliament when the President declined to approve it, saying it be amended to respect freedom of the media. The clause, which could have been used to compel journalists to disclose confidential sources of stories, was deleted from the Bill.

Lifted and published by Korir, API*APN source.nation.ke

Raila confirms�that there was a talk with Joseph Obiero and six others while on his US tour, and regrets that he made such comments. The presidential aspirant says that he was tired and that the comments were made under duress, adding he did not mean to hurt anybody.�

According to Raila, Obiero and the six others�asking questions did not disclose to him that whatever came out at the time was meant for publication. He terms it as a friendly chat along the corridor.

Raila accuses Obiero for causing unnecessary chaos during this time of need for political unity in the country. He castigates Obiero, saying Obiero is lucky to be in the US enjoying all the freedom that country provides. Raila, however, says he is not bitter and is not considering to sue Obiero, but warns the media that they will be sued if they continue to try and dismantle what he is trying to build.

Getting the confirmation has been necessitated by the many comments sent in by those who have doubted the authenticity of the comments (interview published�by Mashada.com and ourselves), an interview reportedly carried out by Joseph Obiero when he got the opportunity to speak to Raila in the US. The interview we have titled A shocking interview: Obiero interviews Raila Odinga while on his US tour recently, in API*APN has angered many Raila supporters who seem to think that a Luo man, Joseph Obiero, cannot publish anything that goes to reveal Raila’s thinking during this time when Kenya politics is hotting up. This should teach us a lesson that not all the Luo people are Raila followers, nor can they be forced to follow Raila’s footsteps. Their choice(s) should be respected if they have a different opinion or if they express their support for President Kibaki’s second term�or ODM-K’s Kalonzo Musyoka.

We now hope that the matter has got the clarity it deserves.

Published by Korir, African Press International – API/ African Press in Norway – APN. africanpress@chello.no tel +47�932�99�739 or +47�6300�2525

Liberian journalists who attended a weeklong Highway Africa Media Conference at the South African Grahmstown University retuned yesterday.

The Liberian journalists were among over 500 of their colleagues during the conference deliberated on media issues of concern to the African Continent.

Those Liberians journalists �attended the conference were J. Cholo Brooks Brooks of the Global News Network, Robert Kpardeh of the Parrot Newspaper, Prince Parker of the News Newspaper and Augustine Choloply of the Inquirer.

By our correspondent J. Cholo Brooks

Published by API*APN africanpress@chello.no tel +47�932�99�739 or +47�6300�2525